PGCE or equivalent in Middle East?

If you do not do your PGCE in the UK, then the chances are that many British schools in the UK will not accept its validity. Of course the better international schools that follow the English National Curriculum prefer teachers who are properly trained and experienced. They also require their teachers to have done their teacher training in the UK. Of course, there are plenty of Mickey Mouse schools in the Middle East and such establishments will be prepared to accept all manner of so-called "qualifications". I believe that there is some institution or other in Sunderland that will sell you an online PGCE, but any decent school will not even bother looking at this rubbish. Last but not least, there are the so-called International "Schools" where they Chew the Fat and they will employ "teachers" without PGCEs, degrees, brains, integrity or anything at all.

If you send your email address, I can put you in touch with colleagues who have done overseas PGCEs with both Sunderland and Nottingham - very different beasts! Better to hear straight from the horses' mouths than trying to piece together the whole picture from this forum.

According to djwill, it is "Better to hear straight from the horses' mouths than trying to piece together the whole picture from this forum."
Piece what together? The truth is that the overseas "PGCE" is garbage and any decent school, whether in the UK or anywhere else, will not be interested in this so-called "qualification". I suppose that it might come in useful if you run out of toilet paper.
djwill, I have taught in the UK, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Romania, the UAE and now Qatar. You, however, obviously know much more about international schools than I do and so I had better shut up.

Sorry Hippo but many schools will accept the Sunderland and Nottingham PGCE. I personally know several people that have jobs in decent international schools in various countries.
I am training to be a teacher myself and both the international schools I have helped / worked in were prepared to sponsor and / or employ me as a fully qualified teacher with either of the above qualifications.
You're right about the UK though - it is not acknowledged there.

Well, MPG1972, there are some schools in the Middle East where you can get a job without any teacher training at all. (The schools where they chew the fat spring to mind, of course.) The fact remains that most schools, whether in the UK or anywhere else, will try to employ staff with the best qualifications and experience. Are you suggesting that most international schools would prefer to employ staff with this Sunderland and Nottingham so-called PGCE?
On the other hand, you can get a well-paid job just about anywhere if you teach Chemistry or Physics. You can also turn water into wine, raise the dead and not bother with things like PGCEs.

My post was an offer intended to help the enquirer get first-hand view of what it was like to do one of these courses. It was also an attempt to save them time reading through a number of posts in a number of similar forums.

It contained neither a defence of this course nor a claim to a wider knowledge than you possess.

Hippo, I am sure you are aware that many independent schools in the UK do not require a teacher to possess a PGCE.
I am very nearly 40, and would like to change career. My family and I live abroad (my wife is one of those Chemistry types that according to you can get a job anywhere!) so the available options are the Sunderland and Nottingham PGCE's. I'll say again, schools will accept these. In fact my wife has mentored several trainee teachers from these courses and they have then gone on to work at the school.
Your elitism is noted and is not a credit to the profession. The previously mentioned PGCE's are accredited by the Universities and certainly the Sunderland one is very similar to a UK PGCE; it includes observed teaching practice etc.
Happy New Year to you too.

Hippo, I am sure you are aware that many independent schools in the UK do not require a teacher to possess a PGCE.

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However, try and get a job at one without one. I started my teaching career at a top HMC school and there was not a single teacher below the age of 30 without one. That was 15 years ago.

MPG1972 said:

Your elitism is noted and is not a credit to the profession. The previously mentioned PGCE's are accredited by the Universities and certainly the Sunderland one is very similar to a UK PGCE; it includes observed teaching practice etc.

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He is not being elitist, just realistic. In much the same way that you can get a degree from a Russell Group university and a non-Russell group university, you can get your PGCE in the same way.
They don't always open the same doors though and those that they do open, tend to open a lot wider and a lot quicker for the Russell Group graduates.
Since when was elitism a problem? You wish to teach in an international school. They are themselves elitist, in case you hadn't noticed.

Yes there are some international schools you can get jobs in with this PGCE, but they will not be the better international schools that you will want to work in. This PGCE does not carry with it registration as a teacher from any country, in the UK you need a DfES number & you will not get that from this PGCE. My problem with this PGCE is that it's legitimising untrained teachers working in schools. Parents are paying school fees without realising their child's teacher is 'learning on the job'! The mentor from the university rarely visits & most of the few observations are done by the school that is employing you. Why would a school that has employed you then fail you? This is not to the same standard as a UK PGCE, that may sound elitist, but when you have properly trained for a job it's an insult to see something you worked hard for being devalued. You don't even need a degree for the one I've seen recently!

I'd definitely recommend doing it in the UK. But I did know people at the school I was at in Bahrain who were doing the PGCE through Open Uni (but connected with Buckinghamshire Uni), I also know of people who mentored for Sunderland and Derby universities abroad. You have to be very careful though - especially in the Middle East as not all schools are totally legit, definitely research it well before taking the plunge.